Apparatus for effecting the hardening of deposits of ink and like compositions



March 13, 1951 J. D. KLOPFENSTEIN 2,544,839

APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE HARDENING 0F DEPOSITS OF INK AND LIKE COMPOSITIONS Filed Nov. 1, 1946 s Shets-Sheet 1 fr? Var-z Z: 2* ess D. 41 OFFEA/STE/N sz/fm; /@M@W March 13, 1951 J. o. KLOPFENSTEIN 2,544,339

APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE HARDENING OF DEPOSITS 0F INK AND LIKE COMPOSITIONS Filed NOV. 1, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ezqzji u Er? fir" Jass 0. l6. OPFE/VS 75m sZ/ w; WMEUa March 195i J D. KLOPFENSTEIN ,5

APPARATUS POR EFFECTING THE HARDENING OF DEPOSITS OF INK AND LIKE COMPOSITIONS Filed NOV. 1, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 [-2 Van f4: 1 Jam: D. M. oPFe/vs 75/ the ink compositions. -taining drying oils, such as linseed oil and other Patented Mar. 13, 1951 APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE HARDEN- ING OF DEPOSITS OF INK AND LIKE COM- POSITIONS Jess D. Klopfenstein, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Meyercord 00., a corporation of Illinois Application November 1, 1946, Serial No. 707,228

This invention relates to apparatus for effecting hardening of deposits, coatings and films of ink and lik compositions, and more particularly to apparatus for subjecting traveling sheet or web material having ink deposits thereon to the action of a treating agent for effecting the rapid hardening, or drying, of the ink deposits.

In the printing of paper and other sheet and web material with relatively heavy deposits of ink, or other compositions that dry, or harden, rather slowly, the time required for the drying, or hardening, gives rise to serious manufacturing problems. For instance, in the manufacture of decalcomania transfers, the drying time may range from over night to as long as five days, depending upon the fullness of the form, the color of the ink being run, the composition and properties of the color that may have been previously applied to the sheet, and numerous other factors. A considerable amount of floor space must be used in I the storage of the printed sheets, and particularly is this true where the printed sheets have to be racked in comparatively shallow stacks. In addition, there isthe labor expense incident to handling the stacked sheets and periodically folding and winding the sheets to give the printed matter access to the air and thus effect the drying more uniformly and more rapidly.

It has now been proposed that the freshly printed sheets be subjected to the action of sulphur di-chloride in vapor form, since the action of sulphur di-chloride has been found to effect a very rapid drying of ink compositions. The drying, or hardening effect, has been found to be due to the chemical reaction between sulphur dichloride and the organic compounds present in In the case of inks conoils of an unsaturated character, it is Probable that the sulphur di-chloride adds on at the double bond and that polymerization thereafter occurs. However, even where there are no unsaturated compounds present, a substitution of the sulphur di-chloride for an H atom in the hydrocarbon compound apparently takes place, leaving both 'sulphur and chlorine bound in the molecule.

While the reaction of sulphur di-chloride with pound by replacement of a hydrogen, the final products in both cases are essentially the same.

Arelatively dry, non-tacky, hard film or deposit is:- formed by the action of the sulphur dichloride within a relatively short tin e, of the 5 Claims. (Cl. 34-122) order of ten seconds orv less in the case of the unsaturated type of hydrocarbon, and of the order of thirty seconds or less in the case of the saturated hydrocarboncompounds.

The use of sulphur di-chloride for the hardening or drying of ink and like compositions, however, presents certain problems in that sulphur di-chlorid has a deleterious effect upon the paper .itself where theprinting is done on paper. -My

present invention is directed to the solution of this problem by. the provision of means for regulating the time of contact of the sulphur dichloride vapor with the printed surface and reducing or entirely eliminating contact of the vapor with the other surface of the paper. The apparatus of my invention also provides for dissipating the excess, of sulphur di-chloride so as to reduce the amount of the sulphur di-chloride left in association with. the printed paper after treatment thereof. s

In accordance with the principles of my present invention, I provide a multi-compartment chamber into which a printed material, either in sheet or in continuous web form, is passed and within which the inked surface is subjected to the action of sulphur di-chloride for a predetermined length of time. .The sheet or web as it passes through the chamber is supported by or held against an imperforate surface, preferably curved, so as to reduce the contact of the unprinted side of the sheet or web with the sulphur di-chloride vapors. In one form of my invention, this is accomplished by means of grippers that hold the sheet against the surface of a revolving drum or roll, while in the case of the continuous Web, the web is tensioned as it passes over a curved surface, so as to be held tightly thereagainst. j

Penetration of the sulphur di-chloride vapors into the sheet through the surface on which the ink is deposited may be prevented or reduced in extent by providing a coating over the paper before the ink is deposited thereon. In the case of decalcomania transfers, such a coating is normally present since a layer of dextrin, or dextrin and starch, is provided to enable the transfer, by wetting, of the decalcomania from the paper to the surface to which the decalcomania is to. be

applied. It is therefore an important object of this invention to provide apparatus suitable for use in the drying or hardening of films or deposits of ink and like compositions by subjecting such films or deposits to the action of a treating agent, such as sulphur di-chloride vapor.

It is a further important object of this invensheet H.

roll M to a skeleton transfer cylinder 15 that:

material to lessen any deleteriousiaction:of'the' treating vapors upon the material of the sheet or.

web itself. Other and further important objects of this.

invention will be apparent from'the disclosures in the specification and the accompanying drawings.

On the drawings:

Figure l is a schematic side elevational view of printingpress and of apparatus embodyingmy invention. associated. therewith for drying or hardening the ink on the printed sheets'as they come from the press. V

Figure 2 is a schematic side elevational view of. a continuous web printingjpress" of a multi- :colortype. having associated therewith apparatus embodyingthe principles ofmyinvention.

Figure-dis an enlarged sideelevation'al view oi -the apparatus. illustrated in Figure 1, with parts ,brokcnaway and in section.

Figures. is an enlarged fragmentary side elevationalview. of .a portion .ofthe apparatus illustratedin-Figure 2, with parts broken away, and insection.

Figure 5. is an. end" elevational. view'ofi the apparatus illustrated in figure a.

Figure .6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional jviewiofla decalcomania sheetillustrating'a stage in its manufacture after atleast one printingoperationbut before the final operations havebeen performed.

As shown-omthe drawings:

The-reference numeral Ill indicates generally a printing, press of the typewherei'n sheets, such as thesheets ll, rather than a continuous web, are fed throughthe press and areprinted during passage therethrough. The" printing press Iii, which isiillustrated more or less schematically, includes an inking roller I2, to" which ink is fed by means of. a plurality of ink distributing roller-s l3. As the sheet ll passes over abackin'g roll it into the nip betweensaid roll and the inking roll l2,.-a'- deposit of ink. is lefton the surface of the The sheets I! arev transferred from the carries gripper bar chains l1 thaiiservetotransfer the. printed sheets face upv onto a plurality of traveling belts IS. The belts H! are tensioned around a pair of rolls 2!): and 2i, of which one,

such as the roll 20,.may suitably be driven. From the conveyor belts IS, the sheet is delivered onto 4 stationary supports 22, which may be in the form of' spaced metal strips having'theirrear ends positi'oned under the roll 2i for reception of the sheets as they pass: thereover.

The supports 22 serve to transfer the sheets I I from the printing press I tto apparatus, indicated generally by the reference numeral 23,

wherein the printed'mat'ter" is dried, or hardened,

. bytheaction ofatreating agent; such as sulphur di"-chloride vapor; In order to progress the sheets ll' inproperspaced sequence and in synchronism with the movement of the sheets through the press Ill, means synchronized with the operation of the press areprovided, including moving fin inside and upwardl'yof the entrance passages 44 j press art.

- an inner chamber C.

gers 24 that engage the trailing edges of the sheets H and move them along the supports 22. Advancing means of a type suitable for this purpose are Well known in connection with printing presses and like pieces of equipment.

The apparatus 23 includes a cylindrical roll 25 mounted upon a-shaft 26, on one end of which is secured'a gear 2?. Said gear 2'! meshes with a. gear 28 mounted on a stub shaft 29 that is driven through a sprocket 38, also mounted on saidpstub shaft 25, and a chain 3! from a sprocket 32; mounted on the same shaft 33 with the roll 18. The surface speed of the roll 25 is thus synchronized with. the speed of travel of the sheets llthrough. the printing press ill.

As is best shown in Figure 3, the shaft 26 is supported in bearings 34 mounted upon supporting side frames 35. The roll 25 is provided with sheet gripping means 35, which may be of the conventional construction known in the printing As illustrated, there are three such setsof gripping means 35 spaced about the periphery of the drum 25. As a sheet I l is advanced by fingers 24, the leading edge of the sheet I! comes in contact with one of the gripping means '38'andthat edge is then clamped by such means to the periphery of the roll 25. One such sheet ll is shown in Figure 3 in the clamped position andanother sheet H is shown in its released position about to leave the roll or drum 25. Guiding means 3'! serve to guide the released sheet H to a conveyor indicated generally by the reference numeral 38. The gripping means 36- thus serve to hold the printed sheet ll upon the surface-of the drum 25,. with the printed surface uppermost and the opposite surface in contact -;-with the surface of said drum 25. The conveyor -3'8 delivers the driedsheets to a table 39, on which the sheetsare accumulated in a stack-S.

A chamber, indicated generally by the reference numeral M, is supported about the upper portion of the drum 25 to enclose the upper half, or so, of said drum, for its full width. Said chamber 48 comprises a generally curved outer housing 4|, the lower edges of which, as at 42 and 43, are spaced slightly from the periphery of the drum 25 to provide an entrance opening M and an exit opening d5, respectively. The housing 41 may suitably be formed of sheet metal, with its lower edges rolled or beaded. A portion, indicated at 46, of the housing 4| adjacent its edge 43 lies in closely spaced conforming relationship I to the periphery of the roll 25 to provide a relatively elongated exit-passageway 45a, the purpose of which will later appear;

Said" chamber. 48' also includes an inner housing 51, conforming in general with the contour of thehousing' l-l and spaced therefrom to provide .a compartment C. Said inner housing or partition 2 also forms with the periphery of the drum 25 The lower edges of said inner housing 4'! are positioned relatively closer to the periphery of the drum 25 than the outer housing edges 42 and 43 to provide a narrow entrance 18 and a narrow exit 49, both lying and 45, respectively.

The inner housing or partition 41 and the outer housing ll, thus, in effect provide nested arcuate baffles with their terminal edges closely spaced from the backing surface afforded by the roll 25, with which said housing 41 and 4| define an inner treating chamber and an outer cx hausting' chamber in restricted communication with each-other only at the terminal edges of the angers are perforated andthat extend across'said inner chamber C. The vapor generator 53 '(l 'ig. 3) comprises a receptacle for containing liquid "sulphur di-chloride, indicated generally 'at55, or other'liquid that is to be vaporized. Air is letiinto said receptacle 53 below the level of the liquid 55 through a pipe 56 for discharge through a perforated manifold 5'3.

As the air passes up through liquid 55, the liquid is vaporized into the stream of air and the admixed air and vapor pass upwardly through the pipe 52 and through the branches 54, 54a and 542) into the chamber C.

.Within said inner chamber C the vapors are largely confined, but to prevent any substantial escape of vapors through the entrance and exit openings 43 and 49 to the atmosphere, a slight suction is placed by means of the exhaust fan 5! 'upon the interior of the outer chamber C, whereby air is drawn inwardly through the entrance passages 44 and 45. Any vapors tending to escape from the inner chamber C are, therefore, drawn into the air stream entering the outer chamber C and thence exhausted through the fan 5! toa scrubber (not shown) or other equipment for the recovery or disposition of the unused sulphur dichloride vapors.

draft to prevent the escape of the vapors into the Only a sufiicient amount of atmosphere is applied.

; ,-,-By making the inner entrance and exit passages 48 and 49 very narrow as compared with the -outer entrance and exit-openings 44 and 45, there is very little tendenc to draw the treating vapors from the inner chamber C into the outer chamber C. The exit passageway 45a is purposely elongated so that the time-of contact between the entering air stream and the treatedsheet l I will .besufficiently long to dissipate any treating vapors associated with the sheet II as it leaves the drum 25. In this way, both the escape of the treating vapors to the surrounding atmosphere and also the clinging of the treating vapors to the surface of the treated sheets Hare largely eliminated.

In the operation of the apparatus illustrated inFigures land v3, the sheets II are fed more or .less automatically into the printing press It) for ..receiving an ink impression from theinking roller 12. The sheets, one at a time, are advanced through the press onto traveling belts l9 and then onto the supports 22,, where the fingers 24 automatically engage the trailing edges of the sheets I I and advance them into the vapor treating apparatus 23. I

As the individual sheets ll come into contact with the drum 25, the timing is such that the leading edge of the sheet is engaged by one of the gripping devices andheld thereby against the periphery of the drum 25 until the sheet has passed through the 'gas treating chamber and is "released at the delivery side of the drum. The

speed of rotation of the drum 25 is such that the passage of a sheet I I through the treating chamber requires no more time than is suiiicient to eiiect the hardening, or drying, action. In gen- I 'era'l, the total length of time to which theciniii) Figures 1 and 3. indicates generally a multi-color press comprising separate sets of printing roll stands BI, 62 and fire-wind stand 1 l.

- 39 for the passage of the web 66.

exit end of "the gas chamber l3, the outer cas- "divi'dualsheets H are "subjected to theimixed air and-sulphur (ii-chloride vaporsiisinot over about ten seconds;andgenerally' in themeighborhoodnf two or three seconds.

In Figures -2, 4 and 5, there is shown apparatus for-the printing and drying of a continuous web, instead of sheets, as described in connection with The reference numeral 60 Each of said :sets includes a backing roll 64 and an inking roller 65, between which a continuous web '66 is drawn. A wound roll 61 constitutes the source of supply of the web 66.

:Saidrdll-fi'l ismoun'tedzupon an unwinding stand 58. The 'web .66 is ledfrom theroll 61 through a-number' of guide :and tensioning rolls 6S and thence through the printing press stands BI, 62 andzw from'thelast of which the web is led over a guid'e'roll Hi to 'a re-wind stand H where the web is wound up into a roll 12.

A gas treating chamber, indicated generally by the reference numeral 13, is mounted between the successive press stands GI and S2, and 52 and 63, and between the press stand 63 and the The treating chambers 13 are supplied'with a mixture of air and sulphur dichloride vapors from a vapor generator 14, similar to the generator 53 already described. The admixtureof air and sulphur di-chloride vapors is conducted from the generator '14 through amanifold pipe 15, from which individual branch pipes it lead to the gas chambers 13. The exhaust .from said gaschambers I3 is conducted by means of branch pipes 11 to an exhaust manifold 18 and thence .to an exhaust fan orblower l9 driven by means of a pulley and belt 81.

The construction of the gas chambers 13 is shown in greater detail in Figure 4, and will now be described. Said chamber 13 comprises an outer housing 82 and an inner housing or partition '83, mounted in combination with a backing plate 84. Said backing plate 84 comprises a curved, imperforate sheet, which may suitably be formed of highly polished sheet metal and provided with an upturned peripheral'fiange 85 to impart rigidity thereto. The curvature of the backing sheet 84' is such that the web 66 is held thereagainst in close contact with the under surface of said backing sheet. Guide rolls 86 and 8'! at the entrance andexit ends of the gas chamber aid in maintaining the web 66 under slight tension in surface contact with the surface of said backing sheet 84 during its passage thereover'. The back side or unprinted side of the web 66 vis' thus protected against-contact with the sulphur di-chloride vapors within the inner chamber, indicated at 8?,formed between the inner housing '33 and the backing sheet 84.

The outer housing 82 is provided with an edge 88 lyingin clo ely spaced relat onship to the guide roll 86 and forming therewith an entrance Toward the ing 82 is offset upwardly to provide an elongated plate portion 90 lying .in closely spaced iconform'ing relationship to the adjacent portion of the backing plate 84 and forming therewith an elongated passage ill through which the web '55 passes after leaving the inner gas treating chamber 81. The inner housing 83 is provided withinturned edge portions 92 and 93 providing, respectively, very narrow inlet and outlet openings $4 and 95 for the paper web 56. Said edges 92 and staremorecloselyspacad withrespect to Edand 93.

amass the'backing' plate 84 and theweb 66 traveling thereover than are the outer casing end edges Consequently, there is less tendency for the treating vapors to be drawn through said openings 94 and 55 into the outer chamber 9!; than there is for air from the outside to bedrawn through the openings 88 and 9|.

In the operation of the apparatus illustrated in Figures 2, 4 and 5, the web 66 passes successively through the printing press sections 6!, 62 and 83 and as it leaves each of the printing sections passes through a gas treating chamber 13.

Since the printing sections are all driven at the same speed, the web 66 maintains a constant linear eed as it passes through the apparatus. In general, the speed of the web is of the order of 10 to feet per second. At each of the succes- 'sive printing sections 4,552 and 63, a difierent color or design may be imprinted upon the under surface of the web 68. Each such color or design must be dried, or hardened, before the web passes through a subsequent printing section or is wound up into the roll 12.

The drying, or hardening, of the printed surface or" the web is efiected as the web passes surface of the web is therefore protected against the action of the sulphur di-chloride vapors within the inner treating chamber 81.

Furthermore, as the web 66 passes out beyond the exit edge 53, not only is the small amountof sulphur di chloride vapor that may escape through the restricted exit opening- 95 pulled away hen the sheet by the exhaust placed upon the outer chamber 96, but air is drawn along the elongated passage 95 to purge the sheet of any residual sulphur di-chloride vapor that may be associated therewith. The result is that the sheet leaves each treating chamber 13 with a minimum of excess sulphur di-chloride vapor associated therewith, so that there is little likelihood of any deleterious action on the paper itself as a result iof the vapor treatment with sulphur di-chloride.

The time of contact between the sulphur dichloride vapors and the printed matter on the sheet is such that the printed matter is dried, or hardened, to leave a relatively non-tacky imprint thereon before another impression of color, or ink, is received by the web, or before the web is wound up into the final roll 12.

The advantages of the equipmentabove described is that successive imprints on'the same sheet or web can be made without intermediate slowing'up or stoppage of the progress of the sheet or web through the printing press, or press sections. manufacture of decalcomania transfers, a dry- According to present practice in the ing or hardening period of from over night to five days is required. The apparatus of my invention does away entirely with the necessity of individual racking of the sheets, thus making more of the floor available for production. Heavier films of ink may be laid on the sheet or web than was previously possible, assuring greater 7 brilliancy of the color.

Also, a heavier film of ink per impression means fewer times through the press to arrive at a specified thickness of impression.

By-placing .Ttreating chambers between units of a multi-color press, a heavier film of ink may be applied without having to give consideration to the rotation of color or to the trapping of color.

In the case ofthe manufacture of decalcomania transfers, as previously explained, the printing is done upon the coated side of a paper coated with dextrin, or with dextrin and starch. This is illustrated in Figure 6, in which the reference numeral 6G indicates the base, which may be a paper sheet or web, the reference numeral liil indicating the coating of dextrin or of dextrin and starch, and the reference numeral I02 indicating a solid ink backing coat and the reference numeral 153 indicating an ink or color impression thereon. Inasmuch as the uncoated side 184 of the base I98 would lie against and besupported by a backing plate, as explained in connection with the operation of apparatus above described, only the dextrin coating It]! would be directly exposed to the action of the sulphur di-chloride vapors. It has been found that a dextrin, or de'xtrin and starch coating,

such as used in decalcomania transfers aiiords considerable resistance to the penetration of the sulphur di-chloride vapors into the body of the paper base tilt, thus protecting the material of the base from the deleterious action of the sulphur di-chloride vapors. Other types of coatings, such as the starch coatings applied to book papers and the like, serve a similar function of presenting a barrier to the penetration of the sulphur di-chloride vapors into the body of th sheet or web.

Consequently, by the use of a suitably coated paper, by the provision of a rigid, imperforate backing plate or surface over which the uncoated side of the sheet or web may beheld during passage of the sheet or web through the treating chambers, and by the provision of an elongated exit passage along which fresh air is drawn over the treated sheet to purge the same of any residual sulphur di-chloride vapors, any otherwise deleterious action of the sulphur di-chloride vapors on the sheet is largely avoided.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction maybe varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In apparatus of the class describeddriven means defining a backing surface on which sheet-like material may be moved, a housing having nested arcuate baffles providing. parallel terminal edges closely spaced from said backing surface and defining therewith an inner treating chamber and an outer exhausting chamber in restriated communication with each other only at said terminal edges adjacent said backing surface, means for supplying a treating agent in vapor form to said treating chamber, means for withdrawing unused treating agent from said exhausting chamber and means carried by said driven means for engaging said sheet-like material to hold the same against said backing surface to expose only the opposite surface of said material to said. treating vapor.

2. Apparatus for treating freshly printed surfaces of successively advancedseparate sheets comprising a member providing a backing surface against which said sheets are held, gripping means carried by said member for clamping one surface of said sheets against said backing surface during travel of said sheets, means confining a treating agent in vapor form in contact with the other surface of said sheets while held against said backing surface and means creating a flow of air over said sheets as the same enter and leave said confining means.

3. In apparatus for treating freshly printed surfaces of successively advanced separate sheets, means comprising a driven member providing an imperforate curved backing surface against which said sheets are held, gripping means carried by said member for holding one surface of said sheets against said backing surface during travel of the sheets, means confining a treating agent in vapor form in contact with the other surface of said sheets while held against said backing surface, means for driving said driven member and means creating a flow of air over said sheets as the same enter and leave said confining means.

4. In apparatus for treating freshly printed surfaces of successively advanced separate sheets, a member providing a backing surface against which said sheets travel, gripping means carried by said member for holding one surface of said sheets against said backing surface during further travel of the sheets, means including a housing having entrance and exit lips closely spaced from said backing surface confining a treating agent in vapor form for contact with the other surface of said sheets while held against said backing surface and means creating a flow of air over said sheets as the same enter and leave said confining means.

5. In apparatus for treating freshly printed surfaces of successively advanced separate sheets, a treating chamber comprising a member providing an imperforate backing surface for receiving said separate sheets for passage through said chamber, a housing having an inner treating chamber with edges closely spaced from said backing surface to provide a restricted entrance and exit for said sheets and having an outer exhausting compartment with edges less closely spaced from said backing surface and lying outside of said first mentioned edges, the set of edges at the exit end of said compartments providing an elongated passage, means for introducing a vapor treating agent into said inner compartment in contact with one surface only of said successively advanced separate sheets and means for exhausting unused treating agent from said outer compartment and inducing a flow of air along said elongated passage to purge said separate sheets of residual treating agent.

JESS D. KLOPFENSTEIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,521,660 Wade et al Jan. 6, 1925 1,592,806 Brunell July 13, 1926 1,724,645 De Long Aug. 13, 1929 1,808,476 Pinder June 2, 1931 1,966,287 Fischer July 10, 1934 2,022,593 Fuykers Nov. 26, 1935 2,065,032 Spooner Dec. 22, 1936 2,127,956 Helmer Aug. 23, 1938 2,152,770 Offen Apr. 4:, 1939 2,174,864 Barber Oct. 3, 1939 2,183,298 ofien Dec. 12, 1939 2,272,820 Presby Feb. 10, 1942 2,306,607 Horton Dec. 29, 1942 2,319,853 Durham May 25, 1943 

